UI don faults police handling of upcoming Rivers LG poll

A security scholar at the University of Ibadan (UI), Prof. Oyesoji Aremu, on Friday, faulted the way the Nigeria Police Force is handling the conduct of the Saturday local government election in Rivers State.

It was gathered that the police had said they would not provide security for the council poll slated for Saturday in the oil-rich state.

Speaking on the development, Aremu argued that the police would not do well in this regard by not providing security.

The professor stressed that the decision of the police to obey the Federal High Court ruling not to participate in the LG election negated the Force’s fundamental primary responsibility of providing internal security.

Aremu said: “The decision of the Nigeria Police to obey the Federal High Court ruling not to participate in the LG election negates the Force’s fundamental primary responsibility of providing internal security.

“The question of security in which the Nigeria Police is the primary agency should not be a dictation of any arm of the government. The decision also negates basic principles of policing as advanced by Robert Peel, the founder of modern policing.

“The fifth principle says the police should seek and preserve public favour, not by pandering to public opinion, but by constantly demonstrating absolute impartial service to law, in complete independence of policy, and without regard to the justice or injustice of the substance of individual laws.

“The Nigeria Police will not do well in this regard by not providing security. And even if the police decide to withdraw its primary responsibility of providing security, other sister security agencies are at liberty to do so as they have always been doing.”